Forest stand structure and cone crop affect winter habitat use by Eurasian red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris)

Dylewski, Łukasz; Jagodziński, Andrzej M.; Tomaś, Łukasz; Myczko, Łukasz; Flaherty, Silvia

doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2021.119705

Cited by 4 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 54 publications

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“…Red squirrels preferentially forage near the 'forest edge', where low understory cover and high canopy closure characterise the area, and trees usually produce larger cone crops than those growing in the centre of the stand (Dylewski et al, 2021;Turkia et al, 2018).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Sympathetic habitat management is crucial for red squirrel conservation (Flaherty et al, 2012 ; Jones et al, 2016 ) with reduced tree cover and compromised canopy integrity of woodlands contributing to their decline. Red squirrels show low use of heavily thinned and open canopy plantation forests, as indicated by pinecone exploitation rates (Dylewski et al, 2021 ; Flaherty et al, 2012 ). Our research shows that the number of animals trapped was negatively associated with canopy openness.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Red squirrels preferentially forage near the ‘forest edge’, where low understory cover and high canopy closure characterise the area, and trees usually produce larger cone crops than those growing in the centre of the stand (Dylewski et al, 2021 ; Turkia et al, 2018 ). Thinning may increase cone production and reduce competition between trees (Otto et al, 2012 ), but it can also cause a significant loss in connectivity, potentially resulting in energetic and predation risks for red squirrels while foraging (Flaherty et al, 2012 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Capturing red squirrels (Sciurus vulgaris) on camera: A cost‐effective approach for monitoring relative abundance and habitat preference

Shannon,

Valle,

Shuttleworth

2023

Ecology and Evolution

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Effective methods for monitoring animal populations are crucial for species conservation and habitat management. Motion‐activated cameras provide an affordable method for passively surveying animal presence across the landscape but have mainly been used for studying large‐bodied mammals. This paper explores the relative abundance and habitat preferences of red squirrels (Sciurus vulgaris) in coniferous forests using cameras and live trapping. The study was conducted in two forests (Newborough and Pentraeth) on Anglesey, North Wales, with a total of 50 sampling locations across four habitat categories. Detailed woodland structure and composition data were gathered around each sampling location. We found a strong positive correlation between the number of individual red squirrels live trapped over 10 days with the number of camera images of squirrels recorded during a previous 5‐day period. The time interval between camera deployment and the first recorded image of a red squirrel showed a significant negative correlation with the number of individuals live trapped. Red squirrel relative abundance was negatively related to forest canopy openness, while the presence of Scots pine and increased tree species diversity were positively associated with the relative abundance of squirrels. There was also a strong site difference with lower relative abundance at Newborough compared with Pentraeth, which likely reflects the heavy thinning of mature forest at Newborough reducing tree crown connectivity. The results show that remotely activated cameras are an effective method for monitoring red squirrel populations across varying animal densities. The cameras also provided crucial information on red squirrel habitat preferences that can aid in woodland management and conservation efforts. Cameras have great potential to collect data on the population status of other small mammals, but it is essential that these methods are validated on a species‐by‐species basis.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Capturing red squirrels (Sciurus vulgaris) on camera: A cost‐effective approach for monitoring relative abundance and habitat preference

Shannon,

Valle,

Shuttleworth

2023

Ecology and Evolution

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“…The current findings corroborate with previous work that, other factors notwithstanding, the size of cones is positively correlated with seed yield. The wide cones released more seeds [32,36,52]. High temperatures cumulatively favor seeds released over time [13,53,54].…”

Section: Cone Characteristics and Seed Yieldmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of Cone Physical Characteristics and Extraction Exposure Period on Seed Yield of Pinus patula

Onyango

Kinyua

Maara

et al. 2022

AJRAF

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This study examines the correlation between extraction exposure periods and cone physical characteristics on Pinus patula seed yield. Systematic random sampling was employed for tree identification in an even-aged clonal seed orchard, and the laboratory phase was laid down as a factorial experiment with two factors: cone physical characteristics and extraction exposure period at three levels. Seed counts were taken for cones categorized as; heavy, light, narrow, and wide at three extraction exposure periods 6 hours, 12 hours, and 24 hours in a constant oven temperature of 65°C. The experiment had 12 (L1,H1,N1,W1,L2,H2,N2,W2,L3,H3,N3,W3)treatments with 60 cones per treatment. The time spent counting and returning cones during the inter-stage observation ranged from 10 to 15 minutes. Data collected were tabulated and means analyzed using ANOVA with results generated as per the objectives. The number of seeds released within the hours of exposure was captured as the seed extraction rate. The first six hours yielded the optimum number of seeds per cone with the mean highest number of seeds from wide cones. The lowest mean number of seeds released observed was 28, from light cones, while the highest mean number of seeds was observed to be 56 from wide cones. Cone sorting based on size before extraction is recommended for optimized seed yield. The stages of seed extraction employed here can be used in mechanized seed extraction cabinets equipped with timers at controlled temperatures.

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Food availability and population parameters for squirrels differ even in neighbouring urban parks

Wist,

Dausmann

2023

Urban Ecosyst

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Some species occur in higher densities in cities than in natural habitats, despite the variety of urban stressors. Urban fragments can be extremely heterogeneous though, and species’ responses might vary between urban patches. However, only few studies examine mammalian populations from different fragments in the core of cities, where stressors are at their maximum. The Eurasian red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris) is highly abundant in urban green spaces and readily makes use of supplemental food sources. We examined natural and supplemental food sources as well as squirrel populations in three small parks in an urban core. We found pronounced differences in natural and supplemental food availability between the parks. Squirrel population densities were generally higher at all three urban sites when compared to a geographically close located natural forest, but with variation between the parks. The squirrel density in the smallest park in the summer season was 42 times higher (index of minimum number alive: 8.8 individuals/ha) than in the forest, whereas it was only 20 or respectively 16 times higher in the two other parks. Individuals from the park with the highest population density had access to the highest amount of supplemental food sources. However, side effects from non-natural food items, e.g., related to nutrition, also need to be taken into consideration and might counteract the advantages of supplemental food sources. This study shows that urban effects can vary even at the smallest scale between nearby urban habitat patches and this needs to be considered when drawing conclusions about the effects of urbanisation and deciding about conservation actions.

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Forest stand structure and cone crop affect winter habitat use by Eurasian red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris)

Cited by 4 publications

References 54 publications

Capturing red squirrels (Sciurus vulgaris) on camera: A cost‐effective approach for monitoring relative abundance and habitat preference

Capturing red squirrels (Sciurus vulgaris) on camera: A cost‐effective approach for monitoring relative abundance and habitat preference

Influence of Cone Physical Characteristics and Extraction Exposure Period on Seed Yield of Pinus patula

Food availability and population parameters for squirrels differ even in neighbouring urban parks

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